


Playing by the Rules

by JerseyDevil



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-19
Updated: 2013-03-05
Packaged: 2017-11-29 19:31:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/690619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JerseyDevil/pseuds/JerseyDevil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Grace has had enough of her Danno arguing with Uncle Steve constantly.  She knows they mean the world to each other, it's about time they realized it themselves.  So with the help of her Auntie Kono, Grace devises a plan to make them face their feelings.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I'm sorry, Danno

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed here. I do not make any money from this.
> 
> This is what happens when SimplyN2Deep challenges me to write my first ever fanfic! If you have problems with it, I say to blame her. LOL! Anyhow to get me started we agreed 10K, I have no idea how long this will actually be because I can get wordy...just be prepared. I used one of the ideas I posted at Twitter regarding things we'd like to vote for back when the vote for the killer episode happened, Grace has enough and handcuffs them together. It sounded good and made me laugh, so here goes!
> 
> Thanks to Liz and Nek for helping me with this...I hope you enjoy it!

### Chapter One: I'm sorry, Danno.

### 

 

Danny remembered the first time her tiny fingers wrapped around his like it was yesterday and every time she slid her hand into his over the years was etched clearly in his memory. His daughter's hands were precious, always speaking volumes with just a touch and usually when he needed it most. Now he watched as her fingers gingerly pulled the rings apart before she exclaimed "Ta-daa!" and taking a bow as he clapped excitedly. Grace stood there beaming for a moment before putting the trick rings aside.

  
"Wait for me," Steve called from the kitchen as he came in with a pitcher of water, setting it on her makeshift stage of the coffee table.

  
"What's taking you so long?" Danny asked turning to Steve, "It's just some water!"

  
"I thought that our star would appreciate some class and so I got out a good pitcher,"Steve gave a little bow to Grace as she began to set up her next trick. "And if you're going to give me lip, you're not getting the beer I brought you." Steve looked down at Danny with his eyebrow raised, "So?"

  
"I'm sorry, Steven," Danny apologized with a slight wave of his hands, "You were doing something nice for my daughter, I did not realize. I'm sorry."

  
"That's better," Steve smirked as he took the seat next to Danny the couch.

  
"Hey, where's my beer?"

  
"What beer?" Steve asked feigning innocence. As Danny looked about ready to start a little rant he laughed and stood up, opening one of the pockets of his tan cargos and pulling out a longboard, "Here ya go, Danno."

  
Danny inhaled deeply and quickly stretched out his fingers that had formed momentarily into a fist before he relaxed again, beer in hand and looking back at his daughter, "Okay, Monkey, what's next?"

  
"Um . . . I can do the water cone trick, but I need Auntie Kono for my big finale," Grace said looking at her audience on the couch.

  
"I don't understand why you need Kono, baby," Danny started.

  
"Every great magician needs a beautiful assistant," Steve butted in.

  
"Excuse me, my daughter is beautiful!"

  
"I didn't say she wasn't, Danno, but that's part of a magician's act."

  
"And you know this from all of the magicians you've met in SEAL school?"

  
"Danno," Grace started exasperated, "Uncle Steve is right, I need an assistant."

  
"Well why can't I be your assistant? Or Uncle Steve?" Danny offered.

  
"You're not the beautiful assistant type," Steve said quietly taking a drink of beer.

  
"Excuse me? What did you say?" Danny started, "I'll have you know I am very good looking . . . "

  
"Kono's here!" Grace squealed jumping down from the coffee table and running to the door as Steve did his best not to break out laughing as Danny ran a hand through his hair for effect. "Auntie Kono, you made it!" Gracie said meeting her just outside the front door.

  
"I didn't miss it, did I?" Kono asked leaning down to hug Grace.

  
"No, but did you get it?" Grace looked at the bag in Kono's hand.

  
"I did, it's a very special one too," she opened the bag for Grace to see and they both started laughing.

  
"Kono are you going to help Grace with the big finale or is Danny going to have to sequin up?" Steve called as he nimbly jumped from the couch before Danny could smack his arm.

  
"Yeah, I'm here, Boss," she smiled walking into the house followed by the little girl, "Sorry I'm late, I had to get something special for Gracie's act."

  
"And we're going to go shopping right afterwards, right?" Grace asked climbing back up on the coffee table.

  
"Of course," Kono smiled.

  
"Wait, you're going shopping with Kono?" Danny looked at his daughter, a bit upset with the sudden development.

  
"Kono said we could have a girls' day, Danno."

  
"You know, to get her something special to wear for her act," Kono nodded from Grace to her father.

  
"Oh, I thought you and me were . . . "

  
"We still can," Grace smiled, "If you're good that is."

  
"If I'm good?" Danny smiled to contain the laugh, "Well then I will have to be on my best behavior until you and Auntie Kono get back from your girls' day."

  
"Who decides if he's been good?" Steve asked sitting next to Danny again, pure delight edging his smile.

  
"That goes for you too, Uncle Steve," Grace said giving her best exasperated parent face.

  
"You two better watch it, seems like we have a new boss," Kono laughed as Grace started to hand her a bundle of silky fabric. After a moment of whispers Kona gave a quick wink to Grace, "Okay, let's do the big finale."

  
"Ladies and gentlemen, for my final trick of the evening, I will need two volunteers," she announced and then waved Danny and Steve towards her.

  
"It's a good thing you've got a packed house tonight," Danny laughed making his way to stand beside Grace.

  
"You're supposed to be on your best behavior, Danno," Steve commented moving where Kono directed him, facing Danny across the coffee table where Grace was standing.

  
"Okay, you both need to hold this scarf," Grace said pulling it from her pocket and handing it to them. "Then Kono will put the big cloth over your hands while I do my magic," she explained quite seriously.

  
"Alright," Steve said nodding at Danny, "You good?"

  
"Yes," Danny quipped, "Can't you see I've got the scarf in my hand too?"

  
"Ahem," Grace announced giving them both a look, "Now if my beautiful assistant would cover their hands with the cloth," Kono made a production of waving the cloth around before she placed it.  Danny smiled as he felt the familiar touch of Grace's fingers around his wrist while she muttered her newest string of magic words before pausing, "Um, Kono, can you help me? They're bigger than the kids in my class."

  
"Sure, Grace," Kono smiled as she slid her hands underneath the cloth.

  
"I'm sorry, Danno," Grace said with a little pout.

  
"It's okay, Monkey. Me and Uncle Steve are bigger than your classmates."

  
"Not for that," Grace smiled once Kono stepped back and gave her a nod, "For this!" She whipped away the cloth that was covering their hands and ran off towards Kono who was running towards the door. Steve and Danny looked down at their hands only to find they had been handcuffed together with bright pink furry handcuffs.

 

  
They looked at the cuffs and then at each other momentarily before turning where the girls were headed, but they were out the door already. "Grace!" Danny called as Steve yelled for Kono, but only faint giggles were heard from outside. The guys started to make for the door, nearly tripping on the coffee table not noticing how their right hands were now connected. By the time they reached the front door, Kono's car was heading down the street with Grace's hand waving from the passenger side window. "What the . . . come on, Gracie!" was all that Danny managed to get out.

  
"Your daughter handcuffed us together, Danny."

  
"Yes, I see that, Steven!" Danny argued lifting his hand and staring at the bright pink fur, "Where the hell did she get these?"

  
"That's what you're concerned about?" Steve began when his cell phone started to ring. He pulled Danny back into the house, "This better not be a case," he muttered seeing Chin's number on the display, "Yeah, Chin, what you got?"

  
"Hey, Brah," Chin said cheerily, "Kono asked me to call you to say that she and Gracie will be off having their girls' time and you and Danny should be good for the weekend. So you two have plans?"

  
"No!" Steve snapped, "I mean, no. When did Kono talk to you?"

  
"She just sent a text . . . oh wait, another one. She's asking if you and Danny found the envelope yet. Do I want to know what's going on?"

  
"There's nothing to worry about, Chin. Thanks for the message. Enjoy your weekend," Steve didn't wait for Chin to respond, he just disconnected the call and turned to Danny, "There's an envelope?"

  
"What?" Danny asked looking around the room, "What kind of envelope?"

  
"I don't know, Danny. Do you want me to call Chin back and ask him?"

  
"Just shut up, let's check Grace's bag of tricks." As they went to move again they were suddenly more aware of their positions with the cuffs, instead of being side by side, they were mirror images. "Oh, this . . . this is great, what are we supposed to do, just sit and stare at each other all weekend?"

  
"Let's just find the envelope, Danny. Maybe the key is inside and we can get a little space between us," Steve let his left hand run over his face as he exhaled. It wasn't really the space that was an issue, it was the lack of freedom . . . being able to move away if he started to feel the pull again. There was something about his partner, his best friend, that just lured him in like a siren call. He took deliberate steps so that he and Danny could navigate the living room without too much trouble...without too much proximity until they got to the coffee table where Grace had just minutes ago been putting on her magic act, "So, is Grace really putting on a magic act at school?"

  
"Of course she is," Danny answered as he started rifling through her pink backpack. He stopped and looked at Steve who was going through a matching duffle, "What, you think she did all of this deliberately? Why? Just to handcuff us together? What on Earth for?"

  
Steve shrugged without looking up, "Just a thought. Maybe we've been around bad guys too much," he tried to let out a little laugh but the idea wouldn't go.

  
"No, this is just some little prank she and Kono are up to," Danny resumed talking as he began pulling out books and folders and laying them on the table. "When this is all done . . . I'm going to . . . going to . . . "

  
"What, Danno? What are you going to do?"

  
"Hell if I know," Danny just blinked and smiled a bit, "I just want to know what this is all about." He paused and watched as Steve looked through the bag. He'd be lost without Steve. Stuck on his God forsaken island, only seeing Grace whenever Rachel would allow . . . he'd be miserable. His little girl and his insane partner were what made life livable. "Hey, why don't you just dump it all on the floor?"

  
"Yeah, good idea," Steve said as he turned the duffle bag over and everything came tumbling out, including one manila envelope labeled 'Danno and Uncle Steve', "Found it!"


	2. Picture Perfect Picnic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grace has had enough of her Danno arguing with Uncle Steve constantly. She knows they mean the world to each other, it's about time they realized it themselves. So with the help of her Auntie Kono, Grace devises a plan to make them face their feelings.
> 
> The handcuffs are on and the envelope has been found! What exactly are Grace and Kono up to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed here. I do not make any money from this.
> 
> This is what happens when SimplyN2Deep challenges me to write my first ever fanfic! If you have problems with it, I say to blame her. LOL! Anyhow to get me started we agreed 10K, I have no idea how long this will actually be because I can get wordy...just be prepared. I used one of the ideas I posted at Twitter regarding things we'd like to vote for back when the vote for the killer episode happened, Grace has enough and handcuffs them together. It sounded good and made me laugh, so here goes!
> 
> Thanks to Liz and Nek for helping me with this...I hope you enjoy it!

 

### Chapter Two: Picture Perfect Picnic

"Great! Open it, will ya?" Danny said starting to shove everything else back in the bag. Steve opened the envelope and took out the contents, double and triple checking when the only thing that came out was paper. He just sat there looking from the pages to Danny, "What? What's wrong?"

"There's no key. It's only paper," he shook the envelope over and nothing else came out.

"Maybe it's taped to one of the pages?" Danny asked hopefully.

"I don't think so. It looks more like a letter, Danny."

"So my daughter, whom I love above all else, has handcuffed me to you the crazy SEAL leaving only a letter?"

"Looks like," Steve tried to hide a smile, this was turning into an unbelievably interesting day, "So, shall we read it? Or you want me to grab the hacksaw from the garage?"

"What? What kind of choices are those? Read a letter from my daughter or let you near me with a hacksaw? Give me that!" Danny grabbed the papers from Steve's hand and stood up, "Come on, let's see what this is about at the kitchen table." Without thinking he offered Steve his hand to get to his feet and then made his way to the kitchen with Steve nearly pressed against his back. They sat down and Danny started reading:

 

> Dear Danno and Uncle Steve,
> 
> Sometimes it's hard for us to see what's right in front of us. There's too much going on to realize what's really important. I think that's what is going on for you. You both need each other more than you are willing to say. Danno, Uncle Steve helps you so you won't be lonely when I'm not around and keeps you busy at work. Uncle Steve, Danno helps you not be so reckless and maybe less lonely too. But you two fight all the time. I know sometimes grown-ups fight and it's not always because you're mad, but I want you to fight less and be friends more. So Auntie Kono has helped me make this happen. You are handcuffed together and you won't get the key until you complete a scavenger hunt.
> 
> Auntie Kono says that each time you complete part of the hunt that you should send us a picture of you two on her cell phone and then we will tell you the next part to do. I think that sounds good too. She also says that if you are needed on a case, she will come and remove the handcuffs so you can work. But if there is no case, you have to stay handcuffed and complete the hunt. Danno, you have always told me the importance of playing by the rules so I know that you will now.
> 
> The first thing on the scavenger hunt is to have lunch! Auntie Kono left a cooler in the backyard so you wouldn't have to worry about what to make. Play nice, have lunch and don't forget to send us your picture!
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Grace Williams

"Sincerely?" Steve smiled tapping at the papers still in Danny's hand.

"Yes, she's really into writing letters right now . . . so sincerely."

"Okay, Danno, want me to get the hacksaw now?"

"No, Steve, no hacksaw!" Danny looked at him like he should be committed, "Not only don't I want you coming towards me with any sort of cutting device in your hands, but Grace is right. I always tell her to play by the rules. So . . . so we will play by her rules."

"We can still do the hunt thing, we just won't be you know, chained together . . . " he said running his fingers over the links that bound them together. They weren't very thick, he could probably get them separated in a matter of minutes. The furry cuff parts would be a different story, but at least they wouldn't need to be so close all the time.

"No. We are playing by the rules, Steven," Danny stood and stared him down, "End of discussion."

Steve sat there awestruck for a moment staring at Danny. He took command of the situation and there was no room for insubordination. He swallowed hard before uttering a quiet, "Yes, sir."

"Are you mocking me?"

"Not at all," Steve smiled, "You say we're doing this. So we're doing it. I'll follow your lead," he extended his arm towards the patio doors, showing the way.

Danny shrugged and lead the way out the back, "It's just my daughter is trying to make a point, and I want to let her."

"I got it, Danno," Steve clamped a hand on his shoulder, "It's important." They stopped at the large cooler that sat at the edge of the grass. "How much food did they pack?"

Danny bent over and lifted the lid, "You've got to be kidding me," he sighed.

"What? Did she pack enough food for the whole weekend?"

"No."

"What, is it empty?"

"No."

"Well, what then?" Steve asked. Danny stood up holding a picnic basket in his hands, clearly not amused. "What's that for?"

"Kono left us a picnic lunch, Steven. Not only that, but she expects us to send her a photograph of you and I partaking of said picnic lunch."

"So?" Steve asked shrugging.

"So? Hmmm, okay, McGarrett, we'll go with that." Danny gave his right arm a quick yank to pull Steve along as they found a nice spot on the grass where they could be shaded if they wanted and still see the ocean. He opened the basket and pulled out blanket and laid it on the lawn.

"Danny, I don't get it, what's with the attitude?"

"She packed us a romantic picnic, Steven!"

"No, it's just a lunch, Danny, don't read into it."

"Don't read into it? Okay," Danny gave an odd laugh as he knelt down and started unpacking the rest of the basket. There were sandwiches and some bowls of salad, a platter of cheese and crackers, some grapes, a bottle of wine, two glasses . . .

"She packed wine?"

"Not only did she pack wine and proper glassware, but there's these," Danny held up two frosted glass candles, "Now I don't know how you do these things on your island, but a picnic with candles usually means some romance. So tell me, Steven, what's Kono thinking about?"

"Maybe they're just part of the set?"

"Set?" Danny laughed, "So Kono went to the 'picnic basket store' and bought this?" his arms were flailing a bit with the absurdity of the thought.

"It's possible," Steve grabbed one of the candles and looked at the bottom, "or not. These candles are from a little shop in North Shore . . . they only do candles. She definitely added these herself," he smiled setting it down on the blanket. It really was a great idea, a little romantic picnic in the backyard at his own private beach. He even approved of the company, now only if Danny would let go of the frustration and just enjoy it, "So Danny, now what?"

"You are in charge of taking the pictures," he smiled making a little click motion like he was taking photos with an actual camera, "So, quick, take one, send it so we can get on with this whole thing," he set out two plates with a sandwich on each. Steve fished out his phone from his pocket and tried to get a good centered shot of Danny while he wasn't paying much attention to anything but the food. Having their hands linked made it more difficult but he wasn't going to complain, after all he'd get some pictures of Danny out of it.

"Got it," Steve smiled looking at the screen, "so who should I send it to, Grace or Kono?"

"Do you actually have my daughter's cell phone number?"

"No," he smiled getting the message set to send, "I'll send it to Kono."

"Just what she needs in her arsenal," Danny huffed, "now sit, eat." It was no small feat, trying to figure out how to sit comfortably. They either sat facing each other, their right arms across their bodies or front to back, neither were going to make it easy to eat. Steve moved towards the blonde's back and sat angled away, it wasn't too bad. He accepted the plate he was handed when his cell phone beeped, "That was fast. What's next?"

"Bad news, Danno," he said handing his phone to his partner.

_Not good enough, brah! Both of you enjoying yourselves._

"Fine, let's show her how much we're enjoying these sandwiches," Danny said taking a huge bite so his cheeks puffed a bit.

"Or we could drink the wine . . ."

"Take the damn picture, Steven," it came out muffled, but he knew exactly what he said . . . he learned to speak fluent Danny over the years and that included the full mouth version. Steve leaned in a little behind Danny so his chin was just inches from his shoulder, then he held the phone out and clicked another photo. It was definitely a keeper, Danny with chipmunk cheeks full of food and Steve, well he was just smiling like an idiot. "As if being handcuffed together wasn't enough . . . "

"It's not that bad," Steve lay back on the blanket looking up at the sky, "Kono packed a good lunch, and the company's not . . . "

"Not what?" Danny turned to face him, as he looked down the sun shone from behind, giving him a truly ethereal look, "Choose your words wisely, McGarrett." The brunette said nothing for a few minutes just looking up at his partner, watching as his face began to screw up in frustration. "Earth to Steve! Did I lose you?"

Steve sat up and took a bite of his sandwich, "You're good company, Danno." They sat silently just eating and looking out over the ocean when another beep from his phone caught their attention.

_Much better. ;) Next up is building a sandcastle._

"Now that sounds more like my Monkey," Danny said tapping at the phone screen.


	3. Castles in the Sand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grace has had enough of her Danno arguing with Uncle Steve constantly. She knows they mean the world to each other, it's about time they realized it themselves. So with the help of her Auntie Kono, Grace devises a plan to make them face their feelings.
> 
> The handcuffs are on and the envelope has been found! What exactly are Grace and Kono up to?
> 
> After indulging in a well-packed picnic, it's time for the boys to play in the sand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed here. I do not make any money from this.
> 
> This is what happens when SimplyN2Deep challenges me to write my first ever fanfic! If you have problems with it, I say to blame her. LOL! Anyhow to get me started we agreed 10K, I have no idea how long this will actually be because I can get wordy...just be prepared. I used one of the ideas I posted at Twitter regarding things we'd like to vote for back when the vote for the killer episode happened, Grace has enough and handcuffs them together. It sounded good and made me laugh, so here goes!
> 
> Thanks to Liz and Nek for helping me with this...I hope you enjoy it!

 

### Chapter Three: Castles in the Sand

            "So you think they're taking turns with this?" Steve asked finishing his sandwich.

            "Maybe.  All I know is that picnic with wine and candles wasn't Grace's idea," Danny said as he put the untouched wine bottle back into the basket, "But playing in the sand, now that sounds like her." 

            "Well, I'm ready if you are, but I'll let you know that I'm out of practice on my sandcastle skills," Steve tossed his empty plate back into the basket followed by some of the other containers.

            "Then you are in for a treat," Danny smiled, "that's one thing this damn island is great for, building sandcastles.  Grace and I have been practicing."  He stood and brushed the crumbs off his clothes, "Are you coming?"  Steve slid the phone back into his pocket and then followed Danny down to the beach, trying hard not to notice the golden strands of his hair glowing in the sun.  "We have no buckets or anything so we're doing this old school."

            "Old school?"

            "With our hands!" Danny waved his hands in front of Steve, "You should be great at it . . . clawing at the ground like a wild animal, you Neanderthal!"  He tugged up his jeans a bit and knelt onto the damp sand, "Come on, start digging!"

            "You're getting bossy," Steve said falling onto the beach facing his friend and sticking his hands into the damp.

            "Because I am lead on this case.  Now shut up and watch." Danny drew a large square in the sand, "dig around that and start piling the sand in the center.  I'll use that to start building the castle."

            "You want me to dig the moat?" he laughed in jest.

            "You're the one that said you're out of practice," Danny smirked pointing at the sand, "Now get digging!"  They set to work, both pulling sand out from around the designated square and piling it in the center until Steve really starts to get into it, using his left hand like a bulldozer, making a perfect trench.  Noticing the happy smile on his face Danny comments "Having fun, I see," as he moved to begin working on the actual castle part.

            "Eh," he shrugged pulling the phone from his pocket and setting beside him, "spending time with you can have its moments."

            "Is that a compliment I hear?" Danny stopped molding a tower for a moment, squinting from the sun in his eyes, "What's that for?" he asked nodding at the phone.

            "To take pictures," he smirked taking advantage of the moment to snap another picture.

            "That's not going to count, ya know," Danny shook his head going back to piling the sand into a mound.

            "I know."

            "Then why did you take it?"

            "You're cute when your eyes are all squinty like that," Steve laughed pointing towards his own eyes trying to make the same face, "and how often am I going to be able to catch you actually enjoying yourself on the beach?"

            "I'm cute all the time, now keep digging," Danny said hiding his smile by keeping his head down.  Steve set the phone beside him again and went back to digging, content that Danny was having fun at the beach . . . his beach.  Within minutes the pile of sand started to actually look like something.  Steve gave up the use of his right hand as much as he could so Danny could do what he proclaimed to be so good at.  It wasn't until he started humming to himself that Steve had trouble concentrating at the job at hand.

            "You're humming," Steve said scooting closer to Danny.

            "If you say so," he continued.

            "It sounds familiar . . . why does it sound familiar?"

            "I don't know, keep digging so we can finish this before it gets dark."

            "It doesn't have to be a masterpiece, Danno, they only said a sandcastle."

            "I don't do things halfway," the blonde replied, his tongue poking out the corner of his mouth as he did his best to make turrets on the tower without anything crumbling.  The humming returned.

            "Oh my God," Steve sat up, "I know what that is!  You're humming the theme song from The Animaniacs!"  He started to laugh and joined in the humming.

            "Shit!" Danny breathed, "It's all your fault, you know.  You introduced that show to my daughter and then Mary found all of your old tapes and gave them to her.  That's all she wants to watch!"

            "And the problem is?"

            "It's annoying!"

            "It is not, it's a children's cartoon," he said looking to see where he left his phone.  Should he reach for it to get a picture of Danny as he was about to start ranting, because he was about to start ranting.

            "First of all I had to find a goddamned VHS player!  It's the 21st century, Steven!"  The brunette smiled, oh yes, full rant.  "Then there's that one with the kid and her dog and she keeps asking 'why' all the time!  Grace now calls the dog, Buttons!!"

            "Does he come?"

            "It doesn't matter!  The other day she told me that he pigeons sound like me!  What the hell is that about??" Danny's face was full of color, like it is whenever he's on a rant.  Steve reached for his phone and as he went to find the camera app Danny grabbed it from his hand, "What do you think you're doing?"

            "I don't have any pictures of you ranting," Steve smiled.

            "You're not going to either!" Danny tossed the phone towards the bushes.  Steve stood to go after it but a quick pull landed him on his ass staring at Danny.  "Where do you think you're going?"

            "We need it to take a picture and send it to Grace and Kono."

            "Yeah, well leave it until we're finished.  Now finish the damned moat while I fix the tower," Danny resumed building without another word.  Steve set back to work, creeping closer to Danny to finish the trench when he softly began humming the theme to Pinky and the Brain.  "Steven, I swear . . . "

            "I'm doing what you said, what's the problem?"  Danny shook his head, biting his bottom lip to keep himself from saying anything and just went back to the sandcastle.  They finished as the sun started its decent towards the ocean, "Can I get the phone now, Danny?"

            "WE will get the phone now, then picture and hopefully we're done," Danny said stretching as he stood.  He tried not to smile as Steve happily lead them to the area where he tossed the phone.  At least he wasn't humming anymore.  "So how are we going to get a picture of both of us with the castle?"

            "We'll lay on the beach."

            "Excuse me, what?"

            "You lay on one side and I lay on the other, getting as close as we can with the sandcastle between us and then picture," Steve smiled holding his arm out as far as he could, "I should have the reach to get both of us in it."

            "Let's do this," Danny said heading back to their architectural achievement.  Carefully they lay on either side of the sandcastle, Steve falling onto his back while Danny stayed on his side so their arms wouldn't be too uncomfortable while Steve tried to get a good enough picture.  It only took three times to get one where you could see both of them, partly, and the sandcastle.  "Just send it, it's got everything required . . . they can't expect a perfect candid while we're wearing these," Danny shook his right hand and then noticed that the pick furry cuffs were crusted in sand.

            They stood up and stretched, waiting to find out if their photo was good enough for Grace and Kono, "We should go for a swim," Steve said looking out over the ocean.

            "I am not going for a swim, it's getting late."

            "You're covered in sand, Danno.  You're not bringing that into my house . . . " Steve was cut off by a beep from his phone.

_Congrats!  Now get Danny into the water._

            "Well, you said the picnic was Kono and the sandcastle was Grace, whose idea is this?" Steve said handing the cell over to Danny.

            "Fuck me," Danny whispered, "I am not going in the ocean!  I'm fully dressed."

            "We can fix that," Steve beamed.


	4. Learn to Enjoy It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grace has had enough of her Danno arguing with Uncle Steve constantly. She knows they mean the world to each other, it's about time they realized it themselves. So with the help of her Auntie Kono, Grace devises a plan to make them face their feelings.
> 
> The handcuffs are on and the envelope has been found! What exactly are Grace and Kono up to?
> 
> After indulging in a well-packed picnic, it's time for the boys to play in the sand.
> 
> Danny's looking at this the wrong way and as usual it's up to Steve to set him straight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed here. I do not make any money from this.
> 
> This is what happens when SimplyN2Deep challenges me to write my first ever fanfic! If you have problems with it, I say to blame her. LOL! Anyhow to get me started we agreed 10K, I have no idea how long this will actually be because I can get wordy...just be prepared. I used one of the ideas I posted at Twitter regarding things we'd like to vote for back when the vote for the killer episode happened, Grace has enough and handcuffs them together. It sounded good and made me laugh, so here goes!
> 
> Thanks to Liz and Nek for helping me with this...I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> APOLOGIES that it's been so long since I updated, it was not planned but real life likes to get in the way of our fun. I hope to tie this up in the next few days. Thank you so much for staying with me!

### Chapter Four: Learn to Enjoy It

             "I have no idea what you're thinking, McGarrett, but no.  N-O!" Danny said pointedly with his index finger extended toward Steve.

            "You're the one that said you wanted to let Grace make her point.  You're the one that said we're going to play by the rules and according to this," he grabbed the phone back, "I have to get you in the water.  And I have no problem doing that."  Steve couldn't help the wild smile cross his face, "You do have a few options though."

            "Like what?" Danny was getting defensive, he tried to fold his arms over his chest, but that wasn't happening so long as he was chained to Steve.

            "You can go in fully dressed, I can get you a pair of board shorts from the laundry room or you strip down right here on the beach, it makes no difference to me."

            "Stop smiling, you're enjoying this too much!" Danny looked around trying to see if anyone was outside in the near vicinity.

            "Danny, it's a private beach, just us and you only have to be in the water long enough for a picture, what's the big deal?"

            "I am not making a big deal about this, but it's late . . . ask Kono if we can do the water thing tomorrow?" Danny suggested, his hand running over his hair.

            "That's it, Williams!" Steve shook his head and started walking towards the water, the waves were lapping the sand as he approached.  He made a few steps before he had to stop, he turned around to see Danny rooted in place.  "Don't make me come get you, Danno."

            "You wouldn't dare," Danny smirked. 

            Steve raised an eyebrow and studied his partner for a moment, "Fine, you call Kono," he said taking the phone from his pocket and handing it to the childish blonde.  As Danny reached for it with his free hand, Steve grabbed his wrist and quickly lifted him over his shoulder and started back for the ocean.

            "Put me the fuck down, McGarrett!" Danny yelled trying to get out of the grasp of the SEAL.

            "No," Steve stated flatly, "It said to get you in the water, not that you have to be wet, so if you stop squirming and give me a minute, I will get you in the water and take a picture."

            Danny stopped and thought for a moment, "Well, why didn't you say that was your brilliant idea!"  Steve stopped once the water was just about to his shorts and held the camera out for a brief second.  "What if that doesn't count?"

            "I thought about that," Steve nodded.

            "And . . . ?" Danny asked. In the blink of an eye he was suddenly laying in the salty water, fully dressed with Steve standing there smiling over him, phone poised for another picture, "What the fuck?"

            "Well, now they get a picture of me taking you into the water and you actually in it," his thumbs moving nimbly sending the latest snapshots. 

            Danny scrambled to his feet, "I'd push you back into the water but you'd enjoy it too much."

            "At least you're not covered in sand anymore and we got that part of the game done."

            "Inside, now," Danny demanded heading for the beach, "I need a towel and a beer, not necessarily in that order."  Steve just followed as they got to the grass.  Danny stopped to try to push some of the water out of his jeans.

            "Let's grab the picnic basket, you can wrap up in the blanket until we get inside."  He heard the beep of his cell phone and fished it out again and noticed that it was downloading a picture.

            "They better be happy with that because I am not going back in the water tonight," Danny said pulling the blanket around him.

            "It appears they approve," Steve handed the phone to Danny and then grabbed the picnic basket.  Danny looked at the screen to see Grace, Kono and Chin all smiling with their thumbs up.

            "What's Chin doing there?  They're corrupting my baby," he said shaking his head as the phone beeped again, this time only a text.  "Must be Kono's turn, it says dinner and a movie."

            "You do remember it was Grace that started this, right?" Steve smirked opening the door.

            "She only wants us to get along and be friends, it's Kono that wants us to date!"  As soon as he said it Danny wished to take it back, at least the tone of his voice when he said 'date.'  He turned to Steve and noticed that he was avoiding eye contact for the first time today, "Sorry about that," he sighed, "let me dry off and have that beer and I promise my mood will mellow."

            "Here," Steve said heading for the laundry room, pulling Danny along with him, "put these on," he tossed him a pair of sweats with Navy written down the side, "you can change in the bathroom and just hang your wet clothes in the shower."

            "Steve . . . "

            "I'll wait on the other side of the door, Danny.  Go on, you don't want to catch a cold."

            Danny stared at his reflection in the mirror, he felt like an ass.  What was it about the idea of him and Steve dating that got to him so much?  It's not like he's never thought of Steve sentimentally. . . the dreams started shortly after they started working together.  At first he wasn't sure what to make of them, dreams of him and Steve interspersed with dreams of him and a gorgeous brunette woman.  Like all dreams they were jumbled, there times when it was just them as a couple and others when they were like a family taking Grace to the beach or the park.  Soon the brunette woman was showing up less and less while Steve became more persistent.  It didn't faze him when the dreams went from romantic to downright erotic and Steve was still there.  Just trying not to let any of those images reach the forefront of his mind while Steve was around became something he actively had to work at.  He was lost in thought when a knock at the door brought him out of his reverie.

            "Danny?  You okay in there?"

            "Uh . . . yeah, give me a minute."  He stripped out of his jeans quickly and pulled on the sweats.  When he opened the door Steve was just standing there, "You know I didn't mean anything by that, right?"

            "Come here for a minute," Steve pulled him back to the kitchen towards the sink.

            "I didn't mean to snap like that and I don't have a problem," Danny started to ramble as Steve turned him so they weren't facing each other, "with . . . anything . . . really, it's just none of Kono's business . . . " he stopped as he felt the cold metal against his shoulder, "Steve?  What are you doing?"

            There was a snip before Steve answered, "Getting you out of the wet shirt."

            "You cut my shirt?"

            "It's only a t-shirt, I'll get you a new one."

            "Well, my arm is free but I'm still in the shirt, so you cutting it did nothing!"  Steve just shook his head and made another cut to fully open the right side.  "Oh, you weren't done."

            "Now you can take off the shirt and finish drying yourself," Steve said, "Want a towel?"

            "Yes, please," Danny felt his cheeks flush momentarily, "So you're a little ambidextrous?"

            "A little," Steve smiled, "sometimes you have to improvise," he shook his wrist drawing Danny's attention to the damp pink furry handcuffs.  "Look Danny, you're going about this the wrong way."

            "Oh I am?"

            "Look, I know you're doing this for Grace and it's important to you, but the whole purpose was to get us to be friends, to have fun.  Even the first part of this scavenger hunt was to enjoy ourselves . . . "

            "Are you having fun, Steven?"

            "When you're not being a stick in the mud . . . or should I say in the sand?" his smile broke what seemed like a serious moment but their usual easiness had returned and Steve gave Danny a small shove.  "The next task is dinner and a movie, so I'll order pizza and you can pick the movie, deal?"

            "Fine," Danny sighed, his own smile returning to his face, "just no pineapple, okay?"

            "On your half," Steve said grabbing the phone, "we'll get through this, just loosen up, Danno."


	5. Bonded

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grace has had enough of her Danno arguing with Uncle Steve constantly. She knows they mean the world to each other, it's about time they realized it themselves. So with the help of her Auntie Kono, Grace devises a plan to make them face their feelings.
> 
> The handcuffs are on and the envelope has been found! What exactly are Grace and Kono up to?
> 
> After indulging in a well-packed picnic, it's time for the boys to play in the sand.
> 
> Danny's looking at this the wrong way and as usual it's up to Steve to set him straight.
> 
> What could be better than pizza, wine and a little bonding?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed here. I do not make any money from this.
> 
> This is what happens when SimplyN2Deep challenges me to write my first ever fanfic! If you have problems with it, I say to blame her. LOL! Anyhow to get me started we agreed 10K, I have no idea how long this will actually be because I can get wordy...just be prepared. I used one of the ideas I posted at Twitter regarding things we'd like to vote for back when the vote for the killer episode happened, Grace has enough and handcuffs them together. It sounded good and made me laugh, so here goes!
> 
> Thanks to Liz and Nek for helping me with this...I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> APOLOGIES that it's been so long since I updated, it was not planned but real life likes to get in the way of our fun. I hope to tie this up in the next few days. Thank you so much for staying with me!

### Chapter Five: Bonded

            "Pizza's ordered, you're almost dry," Steve laughed as Danny was trying to get his hair back in shape with his left hand, "have you decided on a movie?"

            "I'm stuck to you, I haven't had a chance to look yet," Danny looked at Steve for verification that his hair was good.

            "I like it better messy," he reached to muss it up but was quickly blocked.

            "Don't touch," Danny warned then smiled, "it needs to dry.  And speaking of dry, I don't want to be so where's my beer?"

            "Here," Steve handed him the wine bottle and corkscrew.

            "What's with this?"

            "We're having it with dinner, I'll get the glasses."

            "I wanted a beer," Danny said looking up at Steve.

            "Beer later," he started moving Danny towards the living room, "Kono got us a good bottle of wine, the least we could do would be to drink it."

            "Beer," Danny mumbled sadly.

            "I promise, you can have a beer later," Steve laughed at the disappointed look that seemed to be gracing Danny's face, "just work on choosing a movie."

            "How about we watch a game and just say we watched a movie?" Danny asked looking at the couch and then their linked hands, "Wait, how are we going to sit?"

            "The task says a movie and we're playing by the rules," Steve explained as he tried to figure out how they'd best be able to sit comfortably.

            "What if there's nothing on?  Unless you bought some new movies, there's nothing calling from your collection."

            "Okay, I got it," Steve moved them so Danny was centered at the couch, "you sit." As the blonde took his seat, Steve moved his arm about his shoulder and sat to his left, "there, that's not too bad."  Danny looked at him, an unasked question being communicated through his set features.  Steve picked up on it and smiled "I think I still have Cath's copy of The Notebook . . . "

            "Shut up," Danny grabbed the remote control and flicked on the television, "There sure as hell better be something good on otherwise I will watch the weather channel for two hours before that movie again." 

            "I'd suggest Wakko's Wish but I think Mary gave that to Grace too," Steve said getting comfortable.

            "Movie, not your favorite childhood cartoon show!"

            "It's a full length movie, Danno."

            "No."

            "But it is," Steve smiled watching Danny trying to concentrate on the television.  It was nearing eight o'clock as he flipped through the channel listing looking for a movie.  He was almost done with the full cycle when the doorbell rang. "Pizza's here!"  Steve stood, looking down at Danny, "you have to come with me."

            "I'm not going to the door wearing only sweatpants and handcuffs!"

            "Just stand to the side and they won't see you," Steve said walking towards the door.

            "And the cuffs?"

            Steve grabbed the jacket that hung by the door and laid it over their hands, "Happy now?"  Danny shrugged and tried to stand out of the way of the door when Steve opened it.

            "Pizza for McGarrett?" the delivery girl asked.  Her eyes did a once over as he smiled and pulled some money from his pocket then handed it to her.  She went to take the payment and hand him the pizza in turn but it started to slide from her hand, "oh shit!" she squealed trying to catch it.

            "Got it," Danny said ducking out quickly as he grabbed the sides of the box.

            "Thanks," she smiled before focusing on the other man standing in the doorway, "Damn," she breathed catching sight of the novelty cuffs as the jacket fell to the floor, "married or gay, right," she clicked her tongue with a smile.

            "Just keep the change," Danny said pulling Steve away from the door quickly.

            "Thanks!  You two have a nice night!" she winked and headed back to her car as the front door closed.

            "Keep the change?  That was a pretty nice tip there, Danny."

            "Yeah, well, I didn't need to be ogled by delivery Barbie," he muttered setting the pizza on the coffee table, "let's just agree that you don't need to by me a new shirt now, okay?"

            "Sure," Steve conceded, "find that movie and I'll pour."  As Danny perused the listing again, he filled the two glasses with the red wine.  He moved one closer to his partner and set his down before reaching for the pizza box.  It was then that the tell-tale music started, "A Bond movie?"

            "Not much on and you can't argue with a classic."

            "Which one?"

            "Goldfinger," Danny said reaching for a slice of  pizza.

            "Oh, early Bond," Steve said taking a sip from his glass.

            "No, classic Bond, you can't compete with Connery," Danny was looking at his glass oddly.

            "It's just wine, Danny, it's not poison."

            "You say that, but how well do we know Kono?" he sniffed it before taking a sip. 

            "Not bad, right?" Steve relaxed against the couch, his arm loosely around Danny's shoulders.  He gave an approving nod and set the glass down, returning to his dinner. "I kind of like the new guy better."

            "You're kidding?" he nearly choked on his pizza. "Craig is great, I won't refute that, but Connery was the first!"

            "Just because he's the first doesn't mean he's the best," Steve said watching the movie, "I mean that is so dated!"

            "That doesn't matter," he turned towards the brunette, "it still holds up after all this time."

            "Connery was a model before this, ya know," Steve said, "he does well with the fight scenes, but the newer guys, they look more the part."

            "How do you know that?"

            "Doris used to watch these," Steve shrugged, "I remember his hairy chest."

            "Okay," Danny smiled to himself, "so you prefer Craig, why?"

            "I don't know, he seems the part more.  A little rugged , dangerous and fit . . . just look at him!"

            "James Bond fits the tall, dark and handsome mystique," Danny said pointing at the television.

            "Mystique?  Really, Danny?"

            "You know what I mean," he sighed, "it's . . . it's you . . . you're James Bond."

            "Did you just call me handsome?" Steve smiled leaning towards Danny.

            "I meant that you're lethal," he laughed and took another drink of wine.  "So, not a big Bond fan then?"

            "I wouldn't say that," Steve said finishing his glass and pouring another, "but if we're talking about spies, I prefer Jason Bourne."  He held the bottle out towards Danny and without skipping a beat he held his glass to be topped off.

            "I wouldn't have pegged you for a Damon fan."

            "He's not bad . . . "

            "Not bad? He's great!  Haven't you seen any of his other movies?" Danny asked leaning into the couch with  his glass in his hand, feet perched on the coffee table.

            "That's not really what I meant," Steve said quietly.  After a moment of silence he brought out his phone again and following suite, rested his feet on the coffee table.  "I almost forgot, we need to get a picture of this."

            "Come on, I don't want to move right now," Danny sighed.

            "You don't have to, I figure I can get our feet, our dinner, the wine and the television in this picture," Steve waited for a moment when Connery was on the screen again and snapped the picture, "got it." He sent the photo message and put the phone on the table.  "You okay, Danno?  You're quiet."

            "Just thinking," he nodded.

            "About?"

            "Daniel Craig and Matt Damon."  Steve swallowed hard and watched Danny for a minute.  He didn't move or say a word, just stared off in thought.

            "Danny?" he whispered as not to jostle him out of refection.  When his face finally turned towards him, Steve leaned in to press his lips against Danny's.  It was gentle yet firm and only momentary as Steve pulled back to see Danny's reaction.  He sat silently with bewilderment in his eyes.  "I'm sorry, Danny.  It must have been the wine . . . "

            "Don't," he reached out with his left hand and patted Steve's leg," it's okay, really.  I just . . . don't know what . . ." Danny was interrupted by the familiar beep of Steve's phone.

            "It's Kono, she says Grace fell asleep so the next task has to wait until morning," Steve set the phone back, "I'm sorry, Danno, but it looks like we're not getting out of these tonight."

            "I don't mind so much right now," Danny breathed.  When Steve turned to him he smiled, "Can we talk about this when my daughter hasn't had us handcuffed together all day?"

            "Yeah," Steve smiled with relief, "of course.  So, what do you want to right now?"

            "Let's finish the movie first," Danny said sidling close to Steve and let his head rest against his shoulder.


	6. Sunday, Not So Fun Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grace has had enough of her Danno arguing with Uncle Steve constantly. She knows they mean the world to each other, it's about time they realized it themselves. So with the help of her Auntie Kono, Grace devises a plan to make them face their feelings.
> 
> The handcuffs are on and the envelope has been found! What exactly are Grace and Kono up to?
> 
> After indulging in a well-packed picnic, it's time for the boys to play in the sand.
> 
> Danny's looking at this the wrong way and as usual it's up to Steve to set him straight.
> 
> What could be better than pizza, wine and a little bonding?
> 
> With Grace asleep, where does that leave our handcuffed heroes?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed here. I do not make any money from this.
> 
> This is what happens when SimplyN2Deep challenges me to write my first ever fanfic! If you have problems with it, I say to blame her. LOL! Anyhow to get me started we agreed 10K, I have no idea how long this will actually be because I can get wordy...just be prepared. I used one of the ideas I posted at Twitter regarding things we'd like to vote for back when the vote for the killer episode happened, Grace has enough and handcuffs them together. It sounded good and made me laugh, so here goes!
> 
> Thanks to Liz and Nek for helping me with this...I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> APOLOGIES that it's been so long since I updated, it was not planned but real life likes to get in the way of our fun. I hope to tie this up in the next few days. Thank you so much for staying with me!
> 
> Well this is it, my final chapter on my first fan fic. If you've stayed with me this long, I want to thank you for your patience and your encouragement! I hope that you've enjoyed it as much as I have!

### Chapter Six: Sunday, Not So Fun Day

            The credits barely began to roll went the screen split with a new ad to let viewers know that Thunderball was coming on next in the James Bond movie marathon.  Steve hadn't been paying much attention to anything since Danny slid close to him and his body just fell into place with his.  He was just content.  This felt so right.  When his couchmate didn't say anything or even move when the movie ended, he gave his shoulder a little squeeze, "Danny?" he whispered.

            "Sssh, babe," he breathed as he pushed into Steve's side a little, "I'm good right here."  Steve felt the tickle of Danny's soft hair as is nestled into his neck.  Honestly he was good too, but they could be more comfortable.  A smile crept over his face as he thought about getting a picture of this, of Danny asleep on his shoulder.  He reached for his phone and went for the camera app when it beeped three times, flashing the low battery symbol and then turned itself off.  He sighed at his misfortune and set it back on the table.

            "Hey, want to go upstairs?" he asked letting his fingers brush Danny's neck.  The only answer he got was a soft grunt as the blonde's arm moved to his chest.  "Danny," he smiled, "this isn't going to be comfortable all night."  Again no answer, so it was going to be up to him.  The thought of picking up his partner and carrying him up to bed crossed his mind, but Danny probably had enough of the manhandling earlier, besides, if he was going to carry his Adonis to bed, he wanted a more romantic venue than falling asleep in front of the television.

            "Good here," was muffled again as he felt Danny's breath come through his shirt.

            "Alright," he softly kissed the blonde hair and then moved his arm behind Danny's shoulders, "I'm just going to move us a little, so we can lay on the couch."  No protest, no movement, no words . . . Steve took it as approval.  The idea was easier in his head than in practice, but in a few moments, they were both laying on the couch, legs intertwined.  He was against the back of the couch and Danny continued to be nestled into him . . . big spoon and little spoon.  Steve let his arm drape over Danny's body, the warm skin against his.  He wished he had the forethought to take off  his own shirt when he cut Danny out of his.  Steve's hand spread out over Danny's muscled torso, feeling the supple chest hair between his fingers.  Nothing else mattered in that instant, he closed his eyes and fell into blissful sleep.

            Time became irrelevant as Steve dreamt, falling into some amalgamation of decades of spy movies.  He found himself outside of a casino, dressed to the nines in a tux breathing in the warm evening air.  "Are you coming?" he heard a familiar voice.  He looked around, he saw throngs of people moving about, until he found the one talking to him, Danny.  He looked gorgeous and a bit dangerous.  A flash of his smile and Steve was not able to conceal his arousal.  "I thought you were taking me home?" dream Danny purred as he slid past him and started for the car the valet had waiting.  Without words, Steve ran to the car and got in.  Only in his dream would his super spy car be the Camaro, but it didn't matter, he just needed to get Danny home . . . home and into bed.  As he sped along the European streets he glanced at his passenger, there Danny was slowly unbuttoning his dress shirt as if he couldn't wait to get where they were going.  He took a hard turn around the bend and that's when he first heard the click.  Click.  Panic started to rise and there was another click.  Click.  Steve's eyes fluttered opened with a sharp intake of breath.

            "Hey, Boss," Kono smiled, speaking quietly.  She was holding out her phone and obviously taking pictures, "Looks like you two had quite a night."

            "Kono?  What the hell?" Steve said looking around and very aware of his erection pressing against the back of Danny's thigh.

            "Well, the Governor has been trying to get a hold of you for a good hour now, when you didn't pick up, he started calling the rest of the team, until he reached Chin."

            "What's Denning want?" Steve tried to sit up, leaning on his arm.

            "Are you people aware that it's Sunday morning?" Danny said surly.

            "Good morning, bright eyes," Kono smiled and took another picture now that Danny was awake.  "I've come to unlock the cuffs, we're needed at work."

            "I repeat, it's Sunday morning," Danny grumbled.

            "Diplomat's wife slipped out for a smoke at an embassy dinner and hasn't been seen or heard from since dessert," Kono said as she removed the handcuffs and set them on the coffee table.

            "Hey, where's Grace?" Danny sat up more aware than he had been.

            "Don't worry, Brah, Kamekona's staying with her at my house," Kono couldn't contain the smile on her face as she looked at them.

            "Great," he sighed, "next thing I know she'll be working at the shrimp truck."

            "First things first, let's get over to HQ and see what we can find out about the case."  Steve stood up quickly and headed towards the kitchen.

            "I'm going to head home and change, I'll meet you there, okay?" Danny called stretching and looking around for his shoes.

            "Yeah," Steve said from the doorway pulling on a fresh shirt, "that's good."  Danny nodded and left.  Kono just watched the odd parting, not sure what to say.  "Kono, go on ahead, I'll be a few minutes behind you."

            "Are you sure, Boss?  I can wait for you."

            "Go," Steve ordered, "the faster we get intel, the faster we'll find the woman."

            "Of course, see you at HQ," she took off leaving Steve alone.  He took a moment to gather his thoughts and then quickly got dressed and headed out.

            The case was pretty cut and dry, some low-life cartel trying to make a name for himself decided to stand up to his local government and nabbed the ambassador's wife.  Always a smart move to try something like this on American soil.  Aside from finding the woman, the team also confiscated several crates of drugs and weapons the idiot was going to ship back to his homeland.  Once the ambassador and his wife were safely back at their hotel, under guard and the cartel along with his goon squad were locked up, all that was left was the paperwork.

            "Hey, Steve?" Danny asked poking his head into Steve's office, "mind if I kick off early so I can get Grace back to Rachel's at a decent time?"

            Steve looked at the clock, it was pushing four o'clock, and then back at Danny, noting the slight circles under his eyes and smiled, "Yeah, go ahead.  I've got this."

            "Thanks," his face relaxed into a smile, "Catch ya later?"

            "Sure," Steve grinned back and watched as he jogged down the hallway.  He wanted to invite Danny back home for a couple of steaks and some beers so they could talk now that the cuffs were off.  That is what he said they'd do, right?  But Grace came first, she'd always have to come first and Steve was good with that.  Grace . . . it was her idea to bind them together and face their feelings.  Such an idea from a young girl, but Gracie was more mature than her years . . . that was obvious from the first time they met.  "No," Steve breathed, _stop thinking about that and get this paperwork done._

            An hour and a half later he was the last one there, Chin and Kono leaving after their duties were finished.  Once the last bit of information was down, he turned his computer off and switched out the lights.  Steve wasn't looking forward to going home to an empty house, not when the events of the previous evening were so promising.  But Danny had Grace and after he dropped her off he probably crashed at his place.  Bed didn't sound so bad, but it would be lonely.

            He drove home silently looking forward to a hot shower and cool sheets.  It didn't faze him when reached his front door that it was unlocked.  He barely locks it anyway and when there's a case, you just go.  Steve kicked off his shoes and headed towards the kitchen.  He stopped in the doorway when he noticed that there was as bottle of wine sitting on the table with a pair of pink fuzzy handcuffs hanging around the bottle's neck.  He looked around for some sign of what this meant.  That's when he saw Danny in the backyard looking out over the ocean.

            Steve grabbed the bottle and headed out onto the lanai.  Approaching Danny he sensed a careless ease about him, something that was completely new for Danny Williams.  "Hey," he said standing beside him, "do you want to tell me what this is about?" holding the bottle out in front of them.

            "When you kissed me you said it must have been the wine," Danny said tilting his head, "I thought we might want to try it again."

            "And these?" Steve held up the pink furry handcuffs.

            "Those are for if we want to try our own kind of scavenger hunt event," Danny smiled seductively and tugged Steve by the shirt so he was pressed against him, "kissing on the lanai . . . making out on the couch . . . "  The rest of the words quickly got lost as Steve wasted no time and pulled him into a kiss.


End file.
